Follow Me

About Celeste Hill & her Blog

Celeste is a winner of Top 25 Vegan & Vegetarian Moms - 2013

What's your favorite vegan or vegetarian friendly product?

Hmmm, chosing one would be a quite challenge. My favorite and one of the most versatile foods is soy. There is: edamame, tofu, soy milks, yogurts, cream cheese, butter, cheese shreds, ice cream, etc. We eat a variety of non-soy related items as well.

Our family focuses on eating whole foods, but do eat meat analogs on occasion. Gardein is hands down our family favorite.

Lately, we've been enjoying coconut based items a lot. It is also versatile: coconut milk, yogurt, oil, etc. It makes an excellent substitute for butter in baking.

What's the biggest misconception people have about being a vegan or vegetarian?

Hands down people always believe a vegan lifestyle is "too hard" to do. In reality, it simply is no more challenging than any well thought out dietary plan. In the time it takes you to drive to get fast food/order/eat it, you could have prepared a healthier quick, delicious and more affordable meal at home.

There are vegan substitutes for nearly everything you could imagine: cream cheese, yogurt, eggs, meat, fish, etc. In the end, I believe the choice to follow a vegan lifestyle is well founded in that no creature's life needs to end or suffer to provide my family with healthy nourishment. It is better for the environment and your conscience. What could be more fantastic than that?

What's your best tip for families who want to start living a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle?

There are a few tips: find a friend or family who can "mentor" you (I'd be happy to help anyone with this), use the plethora of web resources online to obtain recipes and meal planning ideas, try out the 30 Day Vegan Challenge (http://www.the30dayveganchallenge.com), and join some facebook vegan parenting groups online. These resources biggest help to provide support and tips in transitioning your family.